Monday, April 4, 2011

With only six episodes left in the season and most likely the series (the ratings have really been in the crapper), The Event continues to roll with reasonably interesting things happening. The writers still can't avoid plot holes, but characters are at least making decisions and taking sides.

One recurring theme we've seen is that people abandon principles when things need to get done, and those who do not get burned. Martinez is fine authorizing bloods tests for every American, ignoring civil liberties and ethical questions. His wife, on the other hand, stands her ground and realizes this is wrong, even under the circumstances--and Martinez's stare at the end of the episode definitely puts her in a rough position. Sean has gone full Rambo and is not only getting in shootouts, but also is torturing people. Meanwhile, Sophia has completely taken Thomas's position and now wants to kill humans for the aliens to come. Standing his ground, Simon wants to run away and even prevent the genocide, but Michael turns him in while Leila watches warily. As we learn, Dempsey was part of a group of people who seem to have protected Earth against the aliens, but from what we've seen, he's used his role for personal gain.

But for all these actions that can be interpreted as the best option for each player, on the whole, it's clear nothing good is coming from this. The Event looks like a prisoner's dilemma, where the best choices lead to undesirable outcomes, and on a larger scale, the spiral model which some believe led to World War I. Each character makes choices which look good at first, but when the other characters also do the same, it sparks incidents which only lead to more incidents and violence.